They say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.. But what if it IS broke? Well then yeah, fix it, right? Sure, that may sound simple enough, but many of us are quick to replace our old gear or outwear, before it’s really even approached it’s lifetime. Heck, we’ll admit we’re just as at fault…
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Alaska West
The Single-Hand Spey Revolution
Most of the time, when people hear the words ‘spey casting,’ they immediately think of two-handed rods. Heck, we refer to two-handed fly rods as ‘spey rods’ for a reason! However, it’s important to note that by definition spey casting is a style of fly casting, one that can be performed by both two-handed “spey”…
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Tying Tidier, Stronger Steelhead/Salmon Flies
Last week, Stuart Foxall shared with us a nifty fly tying trick for gauging the proper length of stinger loops when tying trailer-hook style flies for steelhead and salmon. Today he continues the topic with step by step instructions on how he attaches stinger loops to create not only tidy looking flies, but flies worthy…
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Popular Posts on Winter Fly Fishing
We might be hiding out in the Bahamas, but that doesn’t mean our hats aren’t off to all of you out there planning to get after it this winter. Winter will be here before you know it, and while it might not fit the description of perfect fishing conditions, fly fishing in the winter can…
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Stuart Foxall on Tying Trailer Hook Loops
Trailer hook style flies have become extremely popular for salmon and steelhead for a number of reasons. They allow dull hooks to be changed, reduce the the number of ‘short’ strikes, and allow large profile flies (i.e. intruders, leeches, and so on) to be tied with shorter shanked hooks for better holding power. However, when tying…
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We Love Our Trout
It’s been a while since we showed some love for our leopard rainbow trout, so today we’re coming at you with nothing but a cool photo of one of our favorite fish from Alaska West. Go ahead, try to count the spots. More on Trout Fishing Fishing Techniques for Western Alaska Trout How to Fish…
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OPST Steelhead Shanks – Why We Like ‘Em
Finally, the shanks we’ve been waiting for.. We tie a lot of stinger-style flies for salmon and steelhead at our lodges. Judging by many of your comments, you do too! We’ve been playing around with OPST’s Steelhead Shanks lately. They just might be our favorite all around shank for spinning up large profile patterns for…
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The Lady Caroline – Tying Instructions
A couple weeks back we put together a step by step on how to tie the Colburn Special, a traditional hairwing pattern for salmon and steelhead. Traditional salmon flies are no less productive than they were 100 years ago, and more and more anglers these days are finding the joy in not only tying, but…
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Hopeful News for Kanektok King Salmon
As many of you are well aware, sport fishing for king salmon on the Kanektok River (home to our Alaska West operation) has been closed for the past two seasons due to low escapement numbers. However, last season we were excited to report that according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, commercial harvests…
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The Shot-Gun: Split Shot Alternative
Every once in a while, a product comes around that changes the way we think about fly fishing tackle. The ‘Shot-Gun’ is one of those products. The Shot-Gun is a fishing sinker device that replaces the use of conventional split shot. We were really impressed when we first saw it in action, and after spending…
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